Inspired by the drama in Ramsay’s kitchen, I decided to endure a first-hand experience (the chef coat, apron, napkin and cap intact) of what I thought would be a hellishly intense culinary boot camp. But a pleasant surprise awaited me when I visited M, the grill restaurant at Grand Hyatt.

The executive sous chef Pallav Singhal is warm, friendly and rather enthusiastic about his new student in the barracks. “Tie your hair in a ponytail and wear the cap,” he instructs, before taking me on a guided tour of the kitchen.

The kitchen is a square-shaped open Moltini kitchen, the most expensive in the world. It has a hot range in the center, where the heating, deep-frying and grilling takes place. On the sides is the cold section for salads and desserts, apart from space for storage and chopping. There are areas reserved. For example, from ‘the pass’ the food is passed on to waiters for serving while a ‘rotisserie’ is meant for roasting chicken and vegetables. The kitchen extends to the back which has space reserved for dish washing and storage. A walk-in refrigerator and a chiller complete this state-of-the-art kitchen.

Before settling me down with some chores, Chef Pallav fills me in on the requisites for the job: expertise, creativity, patience and commitment.

Finally, it’s time for some action. We start with the basics—preparing the barbeque sauce. Chef Pallav instructs Chef Shakti Wel to give me a hand, and he promptly runs the ingredients by me. I add them one at a time and mix them well. He then puts the mixture on the burner and asks me to stir it continuously. “It requires a lot of patience,” says Chef Pallav while I try hard to keep my eyes open amidst the intense heat.

My next task is blanching tomatoes and asparagus for a salad. This one’s a tad easy I think, before Chef Pallav points to almost three dozen tomatoes and half a kilo of asparagus, which have to be de-skinned and arranged in a row.

After accomplishing the task I move on to some serious action-sautéing mushrooms and simultaneously getting chicken wings ready. We start by blanching the chicken. While the chicken is cooling, Chef Jitendra Nakhawa hands over a few mushrooms and bell peppers to be sliced. I get down to the task, careful not to lose a finger to the efficient Swiss knife. While the mushrooms sauté, we get the chicken wings ready and place them in the deep frying container. Up next is the most challenging task of the day—de-skinning salmon and marinating it. Chef Nagesh Margorkar demonstrates how and I take over half way.

Most of the tasks are accomplished before the guests arrive. It’s 7 pm and the restaurant is open. The chefs are busy at their respective stations. A waiter breaks the calm. An order has just arrived.